Archive for November, 2007

exercising the movable medium

This is a sketch – on site – still working out the bugs for plein air – where to sit – place the computer – have enough shade? etc.

In some ways embarrassingly, this was done from the passenger’s seat of my car – it was dark enough to see the screen and the wheel wasn’t in the way – so sketching what I saw in 30 to 40 minutes prior to an appointment.

Like a lot of my recent work, this was an exercise – not a bad thing – just trying to get a feel for painting with a laptop and using my fingers instead of a mouse. I subsequently took this piece and worked on it in my normal fashion – sketched turned to fully textured and more developed digital painting– but what a challenge to actually make the digital art better.

This captured what I saw – in a way that couldn’t be done at a later time. I am trying to understand the differences and possibilities here.

See Also

Three-Finger Exercise – TIME – a review of a 1998 play called “Art” – the language of the reviewer and the content of the play are remarkably in tune with my own

Another Sunset Sketch – though not done on site – the same kind of quick rendition of a scene – done within moments of viewing

The subjective truth – article title (My Camera World: What I Saw, My Camera Captured and What My Mind Thought it Saw) – but all art including photography requires interpretation

Painting Possibility

As much as I think this is a sweet scene, I find it to be as much of a commentary of the way things could be.

The sunset was real – the image can’t do life justice. But then again it does enunciate what was so cool. The birds came out to enjoy the sunset – watching along with us – different colors (different ethnicity’s?) side by side in harmony with the ocean the beach and the sky – a rocking evening.

For us observing – we were integrated into the scene as well – something about natural beauty that can do that. If you feel a little like you are out there with us – I have done my job. If not, I have a least done my part at digital beauty duty.

See Also

Digital Art – discussion of the wide range of meanings and possibilities associated with being digital

sharing concept – overlap of world views

This is not a particularly representative work for me, but then I see my work as being in transition – which is indeed what this is about.

The digital painting above was done for the Day of the Dead and accompanying celebration here in Salinas – though I didn’t exactly include a Steinbeck Theme – just wasn’t thinking about that aspect at the time.

What I was thinking about what the different world spheres we all live in – how they seemingly overlap, sometimes don’t, and sometimes aren’t even seen. Without the confines of time and space, I am not sure how in flux the world would seem – but imagine a world where we saw every change and everything in flux – not just a swirling world, but the separation between life and death being blurred.

Add to that the newness of painting mostly by finger movements and finished by mouse – a blending of new and known – and at the very least(or most) “brilliant in color”.

See Also

Dreampt Away – a brilliant colored piece from another time – not related – but for the colors of dreaming and the obvious flux of that overlapping world

Escher’s Reflective Sphere – school project shows how we can learn from what exists and take it somewhere else – this is exactly the kind of reflection I would like to see from my own art – as would any artist – learning how to see is an ongoing process